The Wall Street Journal: Web Piracy: The Enemy Within?

While this Wall Street Journal story is about the entertainment industry, all of us involved in software would do well to take a look. Piracy of all kinds costs our industry billions every year, representing profits lost for shareholders. Some companies look the other way, others see it as a clandestine marketing tool.
Maybe it’s time we rethink our strategy. Dollars lost also mean jobs lost – not something anyone wants to see given the current economic situation. Kudos to Ethan Smith and Sarah McBride for a thought-provoking piece.
“In a situation that highlights the challenges faced by entertainment companies and artists in the digital age, a case of alleged Internet piracy is now coming under scrutiny as a possible promotional stunt by a band’s own handlers.
When a track from a forthcoming album by hard-rock band Buckcherry leaked onto the Internet a few weeks ago, the Los Angeles quintet was quick to complain in a blog and a press release from their label, Warner Music Group Corp.’s Atlantic Records. Nonetheless, the band quickly released a music video for the song, “Too Drunk. . .”; radio stations around the U.S. began playing it, and within weeks the song entered the top 40 of two rock charts published by Billboard magazine.”
See the rest here.